Best Ever Tuna Noodle Casserole

Best Ever Tuna Noodle Casserole – creamy, cheesy and completely delicious, this casserole is even adored by those who say they hate Tuna Noodle Casserole.

This Best Ever Tuna Noodle Casserole is my mom’s recipe and it can not be beaten. In fact, every other tuna noodle casserole to me is dry and blah. Most people when I say that I am making my mom’s Best Ever Tuna Noodle Casserole state how much they hated this dish growing up and I tell them to give it a chance. Beg them more like it.

I think most of us that grew up in the 70’s-80’s have the idea that all casseroles are dry and crumbly noodle dishes. But my mom was the exception. Even her Tater Tot Casserole is extremely creamy.

When I met my husband and told him I love tuna noodle casserole he thought I was crazy and then he had this recipe and forever changed his mind.

Fall for me is all about comfort food. Warm cheesy dishes that are full of carbs. LOL!

Growing up there are a few key dishes that my mom was famous for. I can name all of them. We have this Best Ever Tuna Noodle Casserole, Tater Tot Casserole (arch nemesis), Cheese Dip, Cranberry Chicken Enchiladas (my recipe that she loves and now makes all the time), French Toast and Oreo Dessert.

The tuna noodle casserole and the oreo dessert are tied in my book as my favorite recipes from my mom. And it is about time that I share this casserole with you.

I did put my own spin on it only because my kids love cheddar cheese and I wanted to add some in it – once I did that I decided to top it with a few bread crumbs. Oh the crunchy crust with the cheesy casserole underneath made this unbelievably the most amazing casserole I have ever had.

We all have childhood dishes that bring the warmest and comforting feelings and this Best Ever Tuna Noodle Casserole is that dish for me. And while I am not a huge Velveeta fan, I don’t mind making this casserole with it because well, my mom did and somethings you just should not change.

Enjoy friends my mom’s recipe! Comment below one of your childhood favorite recipes and where it came from – as I would love to hear. XOXO San

How do you make Best Ever Tuna Noodle Casserole?

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Boil noodles according to package direction, drain and rinse in cold water and set aside.

In a large mixing bowl add all of the remaining casserole ingredients and stir to combine.

My favorite kitchen items I used to make this recipe for Best Ever Tuna Noodle Casserole.

MIXING BOWLS: I love having a variety of sizes of mixing bowls. From small to large, I find that having at least 3 bowls of different sizes have been essential in my kitchen. I prefer Pyrex because of its durability.

9×13 GLASS COOKING PAN:I use glass for this recipe, you could use metal as well, but I just love being able to see the chicken and the sauce. I would recommend glass for this.

Don’t forget to pin this recipe for Best Ever Tuna Noodle Casserole to your favorite Pinterest board for later.

I made my own tuna casserole tonight, then I found this when I Googled: why do people hate tuna casserole. I’ve been putting cheese in mine for a long time. What I put in changes a little from one time to the next. Tonight I just used a Mexican blend of cheese and only cream of mushroom and milk. I used fancy white albacore in water which I drained off to give to the cats, then I like to sear the tuna in a hot skillet with olive oil and butter to cook off the excess liquid and brown the tuna just a little. I then added some white and green onions, let that cook a bit, then the canned soup, milk, and later the cheese after it was bubbling. I typically just cook it on the stovetop because I only cook for myself. I like the potato chips so I just crumble some on top of my serving with a few leftover raw green onions.

I liked the taste of this casserole, and I generally don’t like tuna dishes. I changed a couple things, though. Omitted chicken soup and substituted cream of celery. Also, I only used maybe 8 ounces of Velveeta..With the cheese on top, I felt that was plenty. Also, my top crust got brown very fast, It was brown in less then 5 minutes. Ovens vary. Will definitely make it again.

I’m so glad you liked it! Cream of celery is definitely a good sub, I’ve done that before in a pinch. We love loads of cheese around here which is totally preference! Thank you for letting us know what you thought!

This is an amazing recipe. It is like a mac and cheese with tuna. I added some broccoli and some olives because I had them and I had to use onion soup rather than cream of mushroom or chicken soup. And I had cheddar cheese so I used that instead of the Velveeta. But it was still fantastic and I have been eating it all week.